One of His Chosen Ones

I’ve been off the waves for a while because I’m in the hospital. My prayer was “Please let them find what is wrong and how to fix it.” My Prayer has been answered. I just got the” what’s wrong and what we’re going to do” message a few minutes ago. I say thanks to my God.

I was completing the book of Judges last week and admit that I will have to have help with the last two chapters. Alone I could find no real rhyme or reason and especially no life application, but I say this, I was amazed at all the rhyme, reason and life applications I found in the previous chapters, so I wait.

Now, for this adventure… I noticed her first because she literally bounced when she walked. I was in the midst of one of many not so pleasant tests when I saw her.

I was not in the best of spirits and beginning to fuss at myself for letting this whole hospital thing get me down. No matter how much I know better, there is still a little residual guilt when I let the trials of the world get me down.

I tried to comfort myself with reminders of all my blessings but it just wasn’t working. She started taking my medical history and I said my usual “I’m basically healthy as a horse.” She replied “Yes, but it’s rough when you turn into a mule,” and turned my day around.

Psalm 105:1-6 (New King James Version)
The Eternal Faithfulness of the LORD
1 Oh, give thanks to the LORD!
Call upon His name;
Make known His deeds among the peoples!
2 Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him;
Talk of all His wondrous works!
3 Glory in His holy name;
Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the LORD!
4 Seek the LORD and His strength;
Seek His face evermore!
5 Remember His marvelous works which He has done,
His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth,
6 O seed of Abraham His servant,
You children of Jacob, His chosen ones!

Now, I am one of those folks who know that God is good. I know that I have spent most of my life a living witness to His grace and mercy. And I know that He is here now as he always has been.

I remember today my impatience with those old folks who had had lives free of medical problems who were just totally put out when they finally had issues, and I smile because I am now one of them.

I have decided to spend the rest of my time here spreading joy in the Lord. I will take every opportunity that comes my way to sing His praises!!!

Psalm 106:1-2 (New King James Version)
1 Praise the LORD!
Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.
2 Who can utter the mighty acts of the LORD?
Who can declare all His praise?

I plan to try. I plan to be one of those who declare His praise. I know that I am one of His chosen ones even when I am operating in “mule mode” and I thank Him for another opportunity to give praise for the people He puts in my path who remind me of the joy available to those who love Him.

Thank you, Betsy Shecter, for your kindness and words of encouragement and comfort.


May God Forever Be a Blessing in Your Life!!!

The Book of Judges – Life Application – 4

My study today, Judges Chapters 15 – 19 is a study of a people in chaos. We see the result of Samson’s insistence on “sleeping with the enemy” in his choice of Deliah, another Philistine woman, after his dismal failure with the un-named concubine.

In order to better understand the utter foolishness of his choices, I sought to understand a little better the life that God had set aside for Samson in contrast to the life he chose to live.

I read the requirements for being a Nazarite as found in Numbers 6:2-21 and still I struggled to anything in Samson’s life outside of his poor choice of women to explain his fall from grace. This was one I had to put down and walk away from for a while because sometimes the truth is too clear to see.

I encourage you to re-read the scripture describing Samson’s life and discover (at least for me) new understanding of his fall.

The Nazarite was not allowed to:
Eat or drink of the fruit of the vine (Judges 13:4,7).
Be contaminated by any unclean thing {nothing dead under any circumstances} (Judges 13:4,7).
Cut his hair (Judges 13:5,7).

My focus of study of the life of Samson before this point had been his very poor choice of women. This is what I had heard in sermons and seen in movies and this helped me miss some very simple truths which were right before my eyes.
a) Samson was to be dedicated as a Nazarite from birth (Judges 13:5).

b) The Nazarite was not allowed to:
i) Eat or drink of the fruit of the vine (Judges 13:4,7).
ii) Be contaminated by any unclean thing (Judges 13:4,7).
iii) Cut his hair (Judges 13:5,7).
c) The first two items of the Nazarite vow was also to apply to Samson's mother (Judges 13:14).

d) The regulations for a Nazarite are given in Numbers 6:2-21.
Now, lets look again at the life and actions of Samson.
e) On one occasion on his visit to his prospective wife at Timnah, Samson stopped at the carcass of the lion which he had killed with his bare hands (Judges 14:5-9) and ate honey from it. This was in direct opposition to Numbers 6:6 and in this he failed to keep from being contaminated.

Not only did he eat honey from a carcass, a dead thing which he was not to touch, but he took the honey to his parents, thus contaminating them.
f) On Samson's fourth visit to Timnah (Judges 14:10-20), threw a big party as was “customary for young men to do”.
I wonder if this feast involved fruit of the vine, another thing forbidden for Samson. (this is not expressesly said in the scripture).

The other thing I had missed, or not focused on, was the reason for becoming a Nazarite in the first place.
Whether one became a Nazarite for a month, which was common in Samson’s day, or for a lifetime, the purpose was to dedicate one’s self to Almighty God.

Numbers 6:2-21 (Amplified Bible)
2Say to the Israelites, When either a man or a woman shall make a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, that is, one separated and consecrated to the Lord,

Samson was supposed to be separated and consecrated to the Lord. His actions just don’t support a consecrated life.

My life application for today was to look beyond the obvious, that which had been told and retold in lessons, sermons and even movies and see other messages from the Holy Spirit.

May God Forever Be a Blessing in Your Life!!!

The Book of Judges – Life Application – 3

Judges 11:30-31 (New King James Version)
30 And Jephthah made a vow to the LORD, and said, “If You will indeed deliver the people of Ammon into my hands,
31 then it will be that whatever comes out of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the people of Ammon, shall surely be the LORD’s, and I will offer it up as a burnt offering.”

Judges 13:8 (New King James Version)
8 Then Manoah prayed to the LORD, and said, “O my Lord, please let the Man of God whom You sent come to us again and teach us what we shall do for the child who will be born.”

Here are two decisions made by men who were seeking favor from God, but what a difference in the requests. In the first we see a man, Jephthah, who makes a vow brashly and without thinking it through.
Compare this with Manoah, father of Samson, who humbly sought God’s council, “teach us what we shall do…”

More lessons from the Book of Judges.

Samson’s mother was childless, which was considered a curse in her day. When the angel of the Lord spoke to her and told her she would have a special child there is no indication that she had any doubt. She joyfully shared this news with her husband, Manoah, who also accepted this news with joy.

Manoah’s only concern seemed to be to do what was right in the sight of God in his raising of this special child and he sought council from God for that knowledge.

The outcomes of these two approaches are very different. Jephthah’s impulsive vow cost the life of his only child while Manoah’s request brought him understanding of the way to prepare Samson for his role as God’s prophet.

The Life Application Bible reminds us of God’s judgment when we refuse to stay in the Way, but we are also reminded of His mercy in times of genuine repentance.

We are encouraged to prayerfully seek to prepare ourselves to follow our calling and be ready to fulfill whatever purpose God has for our lives. Over and over we are reminded that we need not be perfect (thank God) to be useful in the Kingdom.
Luke 11:1-13 (New King James Version)

The Model Prayer
1 Now it came to pass, as He was praying in a certain place, when He ceased, that one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.”
2 So He said to them, “When you pray, say:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
3 Give us day by day our daily bread.
4 And forgive us our sins,
For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.”

In the biography of Samson in the Life Application Bible we are reminded “In the end, Samson recognized his dependence on God. When he died God turned his failures and defeats into victory. Samson’s story teaches us that it is never too late to start over. (Aren’t we grateful for this?) However badly we may have failed in the past, today it is not too late for us to put our complete trust in God.

I thank God for mercy renewed every morning. I thank God for today’s lesson of encouragement.

May God Forever Be a Blessing in Your Life!!!

The Book of Judges – Life Application – 2

Judges 6 (New King James Version)
Midianites Oppress Israel
1 Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD. So the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian for seven years,

Today’s study of Judges is from the Life Application Study Bible which divided the period covered by the Book of Judges into six “periods” and gave brief biographies on each of the Judges. The focus of this study is, as the name states, Life Application of lessons learned.

This bible commentary spoke of the humanity of the Judges and the fact that God is able to use people who are as different as the warrior/deliver Gideon; the mediator/administrator, Tola; the providers of rest and peace, Ehud and Jair; the famous and powerful, Samson; national leaders Othniel and Deborah; unsung heroes, Elonm and Abdonm; local heroes, Shamgar and Ibzan; and, yes, even the rude, petty dictator, Jephthah.

These twelve very different people were used in very different ways to accomplish the will of God.

This, in application to our lives, should encourage us to know that God is able to use even the least of us to do his will. This application should also make us sensitive to the fact that the person who might be most influential in bringing us a message of hope and deliverance might be the one least expected.

I worried when I asked God for a sign in my life about a life altering decision I had to make, but felt encouraged when I read Gideon’s plea for not one but two signs from the Lord. And he had even had the privilege of being visited by the angel of the Lord. My belief that Gideon’s request for signs had to do with his doubts about his own worthiness and was not a sign of his lack of trust in God was reinforced by a lesson from our senior teacher and helped me recover from my own doubts.

Here I was finding life application in what I had previously thought of as difficult tales of mayhem and just plain stupidity.

Hebrews 4:16 (New King James Version)
16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Today I was reminded of the many “gentle reprimands” that God has given me over the years and I bow in humility. I find myself not wondering how the Israelites, who didn’t have the Word in print, audio, video and cyberspace could be led astray; but how I, with all of these advantages, still fall short of the mark. Talk about “Life Application!”

I come boldly, and humbly, to the throne of grace knowing that it is only God’s grace and mercy that sustains me.

I knew, when we were given this assignment to stay prayerfully in the Book of Judges, that the assignment would provide both inspiration and real world application; but I had no idea how powerfully this study would touch my soul.

I will continue my study looking for, expecting, spiritual gifts with the effort. It is my prayer that you will re-read this powerful book and profit from the blessings it holds.

May God Forever Be a Blessing in Your Life!!!

The Book of Judges - Life Application

Judges 2:18-19 ‘Whenever the LORD raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and saved them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived; for the LORD had compassion on them as they groaned under those who oppressed and afflicted them. But when the judge died, the people returned to ways even more corrupt than those of their fathers, following other gods and serving and worshiping them. They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways.’(emphasis added)

Our pastor has asked us to use the Book of Judges as our focus for prayer and study this week. For me it has started with a bang! I read the first four chapters and admit to being a bit dazed at all the violence and the seeming inability of the Nation of Israel to “get it”.

But I know that we have never been asked to pursue a study that did not offer both inspiration and real world application, so I prayerfully asked God to guide me in this work.

I found a site “Jesus Plus Nothing” which has a 10-part study on the Book of Judges which I am beginning today. As usual, I will supplement this study with other references and scripture and hope, as always, to be enriched in His Word.

The author of the study, I Gordon, has left a brief, “who am I” note which helped me to be comfortable to use his site as a resource. He offers the use of the site free of charge to anyone who uses it for God’s glory and his beliefs, as stated, are ours. He also has a dry humor which comes in handy in such a serious work.

Mr. Gordon has promised that his study of the Book of Judges is a study of promise, not despair and I embark on this journey with him in expectation that he will keep that promise.

Our first two promising statements follow:
Caleb was given Hebron, which means ‘communion’. It is hard to commune with God when you knowingly have one foot in the world, and half-heartedness isn’t exactly great for any relationship. But wholeheartedness in your walk and relationship with the Lord leads to fellowship and communion.

Judges 1:22-25 ‘Now the house of Joseph attacked Bethel, and the LORD was with them. When they sent men to spy out Bethel (formerly called Luz), the spies saw a man coming out of the city and they said to him, “Show us how to get into the city and we will see that you are treated well.” So he showed them, and they put the city to the sword but spared the man and his whole family.’

Another bright spot came in the house of Joseph’s triumph over the city of Luz. When you look up the meanings of the names, it is quite instructive. Joseph ‘add thou Jehovah’ took Luz ‘perverse’ and called it Bethel ‘the house of God’. So it is with our own lives, in that through grace, that which was perverse has been captured for the Lord and turned into the house of God. And this God continues to do as we, like Joseph, look to unto Him.

I have quickly gone from plodding through to excitement in this week's study. I promise to share some of the highlights here.

May God Forever Be a Blessing in Your Life!!!

Stages of Life

Ecclesiastes 3 (New King James Version)
Everything Has Its Time
1 To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:
2 A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted;
3 A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
4 A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
And a time to dance;
5 A time to cast away stones,
And a time to gather stones;
A time to embrace,
And a time to refrain from embracing;
6 A time to gain,
And a time to lose;
A time to keep,
And a time to throw away;
7 A time to tear,
And a time to sew;
A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;
8 A time to love,
And a time to hate;
A time of war,
And a time of peace.

This morning I looked back at one of the theories on human development learned early in life. When I was in school Erickson’s theory of human development made a lot of sense to me and was the one I chose to use most often in my work.

I had survived and successfully completed five of his eight stages. I had the ability to trust, a great sense of autonomy, I was not prone to excessive guilt, I was purposeful and industrious and was privileged to have a capacity for affiliation and Love.

1. Infancy: Birth to 18 Months
Ego Development Outcome: Trust vs. Mistrust
Basic strength: Drive and Hope
2. Early Childhood: 18 Months to 3 Years
Ego Development Outcome: Autonomy vs. Shame
Basic Strengths: Self-control, Courage, and Will
3. Play Age: 3 to 5 Years
Ego Development Outcome: Initiative vs. Guilt
Basic Strength: Purpose
4. School Age: 6 to 12 Years
Ego Development Outcome: Industry vs. Inferiority
Basic Strengths: Method and Competence
5. Adolescence: 12 to 18 Years
Ego Development Outcome: Identity vs. Role Confusion
Basic Strengths: Devotion and Fidelity
6. Young adulthood: 18 to 35
Ego Development Outcome: Intimacy and Solidarity vs. Isolation
Basic Strengths: Affiliation and Love

I considered myself a complete human being.
Then something strange happened. I developed this un-named, unidentifiable hunger. It took a while to figure out that this was a hunger for a relationship with God, a hunger for knowledge, a hunger for His love and peace.

7. Middle Adulthood: 35 to 55 or 65
Ego Development Outcome: Generativity vs. Self absorption or Stagnation
Basic Strengths: Production and Care
8. Late Adulthood: 55 or 65 to Death
Ego Development Outcome: Integrity vs. Despair
Basic Strengths: Wisdom

“Erikson felt that much of life is preparing for the middle adulthood stage and the last stage is recovering from it. Perhaps that is because as older adults we can often look back on our lives with happiness and are content, feeling fulfilled with a deep sense that life has meaning and we've made a contribution to life, a feeling Erikson calls integrity. Our strength comes from a wisdom that the world is very large and we now have a detached concern for the whole of life, accepting death as the completion of life.
On the other hand, some adults may reach this stage and despair at their experiences and perceived failures. They may fear death as they struggle to find a purpose to their lives, wondering "Was the trip worth it?" Alternatively, they may feel they have all the answers (not unlike going back to adolescence) and end with a strong dogmatism that only their view has been correct.” Arlene F. Harder, MA, MFT, http://www.learningplaceonline.com/stages/organize/Erikson.htm

Ms Harder felt that a successful entry into the eighth and last stage was “accepting death as the completion of life”. Perhaps this is the reason so many people have such a hard time accepting the inevitability of death.
Erickson felt that anyone who had succeeded in the previous seven stages would be comfortable with the prospect of death because they were no longer struggling to find a purpose for their lives.

God has given me more than 37,000,000 minutes on this earth. Some have been good, some not so good. Some have been spent wisely, some wasted. But I thank God that in His grace and mercy He saw fit to bring me into the fold of His family. I thank God that my sense of integrity is founded on service in His kingdom and not earthly pursuits. I thank God.

Ms Harder’s writings are dated 2004-2009. I don’t know her personally, but I hope she has come to the understanding that death is far from the completion of life for those with a relationship with Jesus Christ. I hope she has come to that great wisdom which is found in the Word of God. I hope she has experienced the Peace of God.

May God Forever Be a Blessing in Your Life!!!

Quiet little blessings

Quiet little blessings sometimes get missed; therefore, it is good to give thanks for blessings seen and unseen.

Psalm 121 (New King James Version)
A Song of Ascents.
1 I will lift up my eyes to the hills—
From whence comes my help?
2 My help comes from the LORD,
Who made heaven and earth.


I would not miss an opportunity to praise God for all that He is in my life, not just all that He does, but all that He is. He is Jehovah Shammah (The Lord Is There) through good times and bad. He is there in the quiet of the morning. He is there when all around me is turmoil. He is there.

3 He will not allow your foot to be moved;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
4 Behold, He who keeps Israel
Shall neither slumber nor sleep.


I live in the comfort of knowing that I am a child of El Shaddai (Lord God Almighty). To me this means that He has given me the right to come in supplication for all of my needs. In this sometimes stressful world what I need most is peace of mind and I thank Him for His peace which surpasses all understanding. I thank an all present God,

5 The LORD is your keeper;
The LORD is your shade at your right hand.
6 The sun shall not strike you by day,
Nor the moon by night

.
Jehovah Jireh (The Lord Will Provide) . Sometimes we forget to thank God for the gift of imagination and the appreciation of natural beauty. How full our lives become when we can take comfort in the simple things of life. I thank God that His gift of provision is not limited to bread and lodging. I thank Him for making my time here full of pleasure in the gift of a sunset at the beach, a sunrise over the mountains or the smile of a grandchild.

7 The LORD shall preserve you from all evil;
He shall preserve your soul.
8 The LORD shall preserve your going out and your coming in
From this time forth, and even forevermore.


Those of us who spend a good deal of time on the highways and city streets have special reasons to sing praises to God. I thank Him for the near misses that I know about as well as those I didn’t even see.

It amazes me how much joy I experience when in prayer and praise. My life is so much fuller as I grow in my relationship with Jehovah-Raah (The Lord My Shepherd), David’s Shepherd, my Shepherd.

May God Forever Be A Blessing in Your Life!!!